Sacramento Kings center and Mobile native DeMarcus Cousins signs one of the shoes that were given away by Souls4Souls during a tornado relief appearance Friday at the Belk Activity Center, which is being used as a Red Cross shelter in Bowers Park in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (Tuscaloosa Bureau/Don Kausler Jr.)

TUSCALOOSA -- When DeMarcus Cousins was growing up in Mobile, he experienced a natural disaster.

"A tree fell on our house during a hurricane," he said.

He remembers neither the year, the name of the severe storm nor the extent of the damage.

"I was young," he said.

He's 20 years old now and just finished his rookie year in the NBA as a center with the Sacramento Kings, and on Friday, the former standout from Erwin and LeFlore high schools and two other pro basketball players from Alabama toured neighborhoods hit hard by a deadly April 27 tornado.

They won't forget what they saw.

"This is my state," Cousins said after the group returned to a Red Cross shelter at the Belk Activity Center to hand out shoes from Soles4Souls and NBA Cares shirts, sign autographs and film a Red Cross public service announcement. "This is the craziest thing I've ever seen. To know there was a building standing there and now it's nothing but rubble, it's crazy.

"To see the people suffering like this hurts. I'm going to try to give back as much as I can."

Cousins was joined Friday by former Kentucky teammate Eric Bledsoe and D.J. White. Bledsoe starred at Parker High School and now is a guard with the Los Angeles Clippers. White went from Hillcrest High School in Tuscaloosa County to Indiana and now is a forward with the Charlotte Bobcats.

"I just wanted to help out," Bledsoe said. "It could have been my family in this position. I want to put a smile on peoples' faces and show them they can always bounce back."

White experienced a deadly tornado that killed 10 people 10 years ago.

"I saw some of the devastation," he said. "Some of it happened almost across the street from my high school."

But that was nothing compared to what White saw Friday, "things you don't want to see," he said. "My heart goes out to all of the these people. It means a lot to me, because I'm from this town."

A third-year pro, White was traded this season from the Oklahoma City Thunder. In 24 games with the Bobcats, he averaged 8.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 19.4 minutes per game.

"It worked out well," he said. "I didn't get a chance to play much at Oklahoma City. Things are looking brighter in Charlotte. It's a new beginning for me."

White was impressed with the seasons Cousins and Bledsoe had.

"DeMarcus is one of the top three or four rookies," White said. "Eric grew and grew."

Bledsoe started 25 games for the Clippers and averaged 6.7 points, 3.6 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 22.7 minutes per game.

"I had ups and downs, but I thought I did pretty good," he said.

What was the highlight of his first pro season?

"Throwing it up to Blake Griffin," Bledsoe said. "He's an animal. Whatever you throw up, he's going to get."

Cousins started 62 games and averaged 14.1 points, 8.6 rebounds and 28.5 minutes per game.

He shook his head when asked to assess his rookie year.

"I really don't want to talk about basketball," Cousins said. "It's really about this right now."